121 years have passed since the wild North Pole adventure of Norwegian explorers Nansen, Sverdrup, Wisting and Amundsen from 1893 to 1912. In his turn, French explorer Gilles Elkaim prepares to cross the icy Arctic Ocean aboard his shipArktika, specially designed to navigate in the polar regions. But this time, the expedition, which will take place solo (scheduled between 2016 and 2018) and, in part, by the power of autonomous energies, will benefit, thanks to its partnership with Advanced-Tracking, from a minute-by-minute tracking thanks to a particularly high-performance geolocation beacon.
Gilles Elkaim's project
Gilles Elkaim's passion for the North Pole is driven by the imperative that man must adapt to the environment he explores, not the other way round. This is a philosophy that the navigator wishes to share with all those who will follow, from near or far, the stages of his journey, and which his boat, the Arktika, designed to run on renewable energies, embodies to perfection.
In fact, the wind turbines and the solar kit supplied by Advanced-Tracking - consisting of a solar panel, battery, case and suction cup holder - will take care of making the most of the natural elements to ensure the energy autonomy of the geolocation beacon on board the Arktika.
The trip program
Gilles Elkaim's new adventure is scheduled to last two years and is divided into two major moments:
- Navigation itself, from the New Siberian islands to the Svalbard archipelago,
- A month-long journey to the North Pole with sled dogs.
Already unique in its kind, the difficulty of the expedition is increased by the type of navigation chosen, which is that of drifting, by the absence of any assistance and by a total of eight months of polar night. However, according to Gilles Elkaim, two years and such measures will not be enough to convince mankind of the need to respect the Arctic environment...
A message to the planet
By living in this way, in total symbiosis with the Arctic environment, and traveling there on a simple sailboat, Gilles Elkaim hopes to demonstrate that the polar regions, now claimed by certain countries wishing to exploit their natural resources, belong to no one.
Although he has chosen to set off alone, he has taken all the necessary steps to make his adventure public to the whole world, thanks to the Delorme Explorer beacon with which Advanced-tracking has equipped the Arktika. Also powered by 7 integrated solar panels, this beacon will not only enable the navigator to establish his route point by point in the middle of the pack ice, but also to communicate his progress in the pack ice and his observations, even from the most isolated locations.
All in all, a unique adventure, as beautiful as it is thrilling, which Advanced-Tracking is proud to sponsor!